Беззубая Америка

kilativ — 07.01.2021 But Pennsatucky’s teeth aren’t just ‘meth teeth.’ They are the teeth of poor folk, of the young grandma who helped to raise me and for decades worked from diner to factory line to a desk job as a probation officer for the county court system in Wichita, Kansas. She was just 35 when I was born, so I knew her as a radiant thing; at the downtown courthouse, where I tagged along – babysitters are expensive – attorneys turned flirtatious near her green eyes, long limbs and shiny, natural-blonde bob. Then at night, in her farmhouse or the tiny brick house we fixed up in a rough Wichita neighbourhood, I watched her take out her teeth, scrub them with a rough brush, and drop them into a cup of water with a fizzy tablet.
‘Brush your teeth and don’t eat too much candy,’ she’d tell me. ‘You don’t want to end up like Grandma.’ She’d widen her eyes and pop her dentures forward so that they bulged from her lips, sending me giggling. In the early 1970s, a dentist had pried every one of her teeth, too far gone or too expensive to save, from her 20-something skull. She’s 69 now and has worn false teeth for more than 40 years.
More than 126 million people in the US – nearly half the population – had no dental coverage in 2012, according to the US National Association of Dental Plans. In 2007, the New York State Dental Journal reported that while only one-tenth of general physician costs were paid out of pocket, nearly half of all dental costs were settled directly by patients. This reflects spending by the uninsured but also those sharing costs with coverage providers; most plans cover routine cleanings but leave patients to pay for 20 to 50 per cent of fillings, crowns and other big-ticket visits. For those who can’t afford to pay that difference, treatment is delayed and teeth continue to degrade.
But expense isn’t the only barrier to dental care. Those on Medicaid find that few dentists participate in the programme due to its low payout. And more than 45 million people in the US live in areas, often rural or impoverished, with dentist shortages, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services. Medicare, as a general rule, doesn’t include dental.
Отсюда

Плохие зубы - признак бедности в США и потом найти работу с плохими зубами будет проблематично. Их не спрячешь на собеседовании. У половины населения нет зубной страховки и большинство даже со страховкой платит от 20 до 50% из своего кармана. А цены на зубные процедуры тут очень суровые. Дешевле в Россию или Белоруссию слетать и починить зубы у платного стоматолога. Качество тоже всякое бывает, как обычно. Мы не поскупились и потратили почти десять тысяч долларов на зубы детям. Это инвестиция, которую не всякий может себе позволить. Мы, как верхний миддл-класс можем, но у большинства американцев вовсе не голливудские улыбки. А если съездить в Алабаму или даже Тусон (Аризона) - так вообще пипец. У негров, кстати, зубы от природы более устойчивы. Там даже у бедняков с улыбками неплохо, хотя и не у всех. Пишут так же, что на живущие на пособия и пенсию в основном вынуждены платить за зубы из своего кармана. В том числе пенсионеры - нахрен им уже зубы нужны, верно?

Оставить комментарий

Популярные посты:

• Ранее
• Архив